The focus of the mission will be a humanitarian outreach to the 13 villages and the two primary schools located on the Soysambu.

“We had come to a place in our lives not only as individuals, but also as a family, that we said to God we were all in — regardless of His answer,” Al Terry, of Santa Rosa Beach, told The Log. “We only wanted to be sold out for Jesus Christ. It wasn’t long after crying out to God that He called us to the mission field. We weren’t sure what it would look like, but we said anything, and anything means anything.”

The family kept this news to themselves for more than a month and then met with their pastor, Steve Vaggalis at Destiny Worship Center.

“Pastor Steve encouraged us to ‘cross the T’s’ of our ministry,” Terry said. “Territory, Time, Team, Treasure. As we prayed for confirmation, God began to cross the T’s. Destiny Kenya is God’s plan — His idea. God purposes us to do life as a community, a tribe, a village. We only wanted to be obedient, but God kept the details within the framework of community. Out of obedience to the Holy Spirit, Destiny Kenya was created.”

Family in obedience

The Terrys, who were scheduled to arrive in Nairobi Sept. 20, will stay on the Soysambu and rent a house from the conservancy. They still believe God will supply a 4x4 vehicle for their work. “God has been so faithful; we are excited to see how He is going to answer this prayer.”

Three of the Terry’s children will remain here — Kasce, oldest daughter living in Fort Walton Beach; Brook, second oldest in Santa Rosa Beach; and son Nathan, who plays basketball at Dalton State in Dalton, Ga.

“Victoria and Sophia are such an inspiration. Trusting God is a natural way of life for them, like it should be,” Terry said. “But for them to be 15 and have that kind of faith is exciting to see in our culture. The other three are very excited about us moving to Kenya. We would love to have all five of our children with us on the mission field. But our prayer is that they all walk in their God given destiny.”

Although moving was not the intention of the family, they wanted to be obedient to the Holy Spirit. The Terrys love living in Santa Rosa Beach, what they call “the most beautiful city in the world.”

“We only wanted our lives to be the evidence of the love of God,” Terry said.

Mission teams are welcome to visit the Terrys in Kenya and work on projects since Terry said he firmly believes this should be a community effort. To plan a trip or learn more about the mission, visit www.dwckenya.com

“When people visit a third world country, they bring a spiritual mind back with them to their local church. Our heart is that this ministry touches the people of the Emerald Coast,” he added.

The eventual goal of Destiny Kenya includes building an orphanage, school, church, and more. A staff will be in place to work in many different areas, including boring water holes and doing ministry in other areas.

Missions Pastor Santiago Rodriguez at Destiny Worship Center told The Log that Destiny would send at least two mission teams a year beginning in 2014 and support the mission financially.

“Kenya is a land of great humanitarian need,” Rodriguez said. “It is surrounded by countries that have been marred by desperate droughts, wars, and an extreme poverty, and hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled their countries and landed in Kenya. The children who are part of the schools that Al and Missy will work with are already in advanced stages of malnutrition and the first thing Al and Missy will establish, with Destiny's financial help, is to get a more steady and nutritious feeding situation for these kids in order to get them healthy and properly educated.”

But all this takes financial support, and the community is needed for prayers and donations. To support Destiny Kenya and the Terry’s efforts, visit www.destinyworshipcenter.com. All donations are tax deductible.

A beginning

“Our initial effort will be to improve the existing school lunch program at the two primary schools, pre-K to eighth grade,” Terry said. “The children walk an average of nine miles each way to school. They are burning a tremendous amount of calories. These children are suffering from severe malnutrition.”

The current meal doesn’t provide any nutrition for the children — it is only enough to keep them alive. The Terrys want to increase the nutritional value of the food, then progress to additional food items.

“In Kenya, the children must pass a test to enter high school,” Terry said. “Increasing the percentage of high school graduates among the 13 villages will begin to transform the communities. As hope begins to rise, families are strengthened.”

With current kitchens made of mud and falling apart, the first building project will be a kitchen at each of the schools, where a lady from a nearby village can cook meals.

“Building the kitchens will do two things,” Terry said. “It not only provides an improved environment for preparing the meals, but building these kitchens also shows the people on the Soysambu that you are sincere about building relationships and trust. They are more than just buildings.”

And building relationships is what this mission is about.

“Making disciples will grow out of that effort,” Terry said. “Everything we do is born out of love. Being the hands and feet of Jesus will testify of itself.”

KEEPING TABS ON KENYA

After the family gets settled in Kenya, they will submit articles and photos to The Log about their experiences on the Soysambu Wildlife Conservancy in a column, “Destiny Kenya.”

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